Gas cylinder cleaning apparatus



1954 R. KAYE GAS CYLINDER CLEANING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 6, 1950 INVENTOR ROBE/Q7155 5/475 ATTOR/VE K5 Aug. 3, 1954 R. KAYE 2,685,096

GAS CYLINDER CLEANING APPARATUS Filed March 6, 1950 2 SheetsSheet 2 INVENTOR A 5 m4 )2 A TTO/T/VfYJ Patented Aug. 3, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE,

2,685,096 GAS CYLINDER CLEANING APPARATUS Robert Lee Kaye, Newark, N, J.

Application March 6, 1950, Serial No.

6 Claims.

The present invention concerns the cleaning and refinishing of gas cylinders.

It is an object of the invention to cleaner and inder ready for painting or the like.

In the drawings like numbers refer to like parts.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of one form of the invention.

control means.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary detail of an alternate form of the bottom brush mounting.

One form of the device, which is presented as illustrative of the invention and not as limiting, has a body member (0 comprising a base, frame and housing. A side receiving opening II is provided by hinged door I 2. One half is hinged at H and forms an inclined ramp having a loading stirrup or stop 18. The hinge H may be supplied with tion under the action of rod I 4.

Within body member H! on various types of cylinder tops. carries outwardly and spring expeller arms 28.

Rotary bottom brush 29 is mounted on shaft 30 which is Brush 29 is cup shaped and mittent use. In normal operation brush 29 is used to buff the cylinder bottoms only one fifth as much as body brush I9 is used on an equivalent body area.

An exhaust blower 3| is provided with air through housing air intake 32 and a blower discharge pipe 33 and serves to dry the cleaned cyl- Bell I 0 and con- 40. Shaft 30 crank 3'! is pivoted at 38 to frame nected by link 39 to cam member is seated in cam tended by thrust bearing 54. is biased clockwise to 55 anchored to frame 56 which is keyed to shaft 24.

Shoulder brush 21 59 holds brush 2'! yielding in position.

Where it is desired to have brush 29 operate at an angle of thirty to forty-five degrees to the axis of a cylinder the end of shaft 30 may be provided with a universal joint 6!] which carries brush 29. The desired angle of application of brush 29 to bottom of a cylinder may be obtained by adjusting rod 6|, which is pivotally connected to ball bearing race way 62 through a handle 66. Support 63 is threaded to receive rod BI and allow angular adjustment of brush 29 by means of ball joint 64.

To minimize the danger of fire all brushes are of nonferrous material and inclined ramp I6 is provided with a rubber cushion. The hinge ll is at the longitudinal center of gravity of the normal cylinder so that ramp I6 is easily raised when a cylinder is in place. The hinge l1 may be made self latching for ease of operation.

An intake 32 is preferably connected to a duct providing outside air and discharge pipe 33 is filtered or run out doors to make the device explosion proof. It is to be noted that the clean air from intake 32 flows across Plexiglas cover H and keeps it free of fog and dust.

The operation of the device is as follows: As cylinder to be cleaned is rolled onto inclined ramp portion IS with its bottom resting against loading stirrup l8 and tilted until hinge l1 latches. The cylinder is then rolled off receiving shelf [2 and through opening ll until it rests against body brush l9 and deflects spring expeller arms 28. The cylinder then rests upon traction drive wheels 22 and body brush 19. Arm I3 is now rotated clockwise, moving expeller arms 28 back and causing hold down wheel 25 to bear upon the upper outer wall portion of the cylinder being cleaned, both holding it in place and forcing it against brushes l9 and 21. Rod Hi closes door l2 and motor 2i rotates shafts 20 and 23 in the same direction, turning the surface of the cylinder against the movement of brush is and enhancing its cleaning action.

Hot caustic solution within housing in is sprayed on the cylinder. Brush l9 removes all paint and the like from the cylinder body while brush 21 cleans the cylinder shoulder and top. Both brushes have a burnishing action. The cylinder being cleaned is normally allowed to rotate five times for a complete cleaning operation. During one of these rotations adjustable rotary bottom brush 29 is advanced and cleans the bottom of the cylinder.

After about four revolutions the caustic spray is turned off and exhaust blower 3i circulates air around the rotating cylinder. After the fifth revolution the cylinder is usually clean and dry. Lever I3 is then rotated counterclockwise, opening door l2. Hold down wheel 25 is released and expeller arms 28 roll the cylinder over drive wheels 22 and onto shelf l2. The cylinder is then tilted with ramp l6 and rests against loading stirru l8. It is then rolled off onto a rack of cleaned cylinders. The next cylinder is then rolled onto ramp l6 and the process repeated.

Brush 29 is rotated at about five hundred r. p. m. and is highly adjustable in its differential mounting. The functions of control lever l3 deserve special attention. Once a cylinder is in place lever l3 closes door 12 when pulled down with spring 55. If lever i3 is pressed down more roller 25 presses the cylinder against body brush l9 increasing its action and against drive rollers 22 insuring increased traction. At the same time the skewed axis of roller 25 causes it to exert a longitudinal force on the cylinder and causes it to roll against shoulder brush 21 which adjusts itself in its fork mounting 51 under the action of spring 59.

Before forcing the cylinder against brush 21 by the action of skewed roller 25 it is usually preferred to pull control lever I3 out rotating bell crank 31 and cam member 40 counterclockwise. This action forces brush 29 against the bottom of the cylinder to be cleaned. Where the construction of Fig. 4 is employed rod 6| is adjusted so that the brush 29 acts at the desired angle by rotating rod 6| in threaded support member 63.

Where the more simple construction of handle 53 is used to replace kinematic arrangement 34-42 inclusive, thrust bearing 54 permits handle 53 to be held and forced against the end of rotating shaft 30. In this manner brush 29 may be applied to the bottom of a cylinder being cleaned.

I claim:

1. In a device for cleaning, drying and polishing heavy gas cylinders, a housing, a door for said housing, a ramp hinged to said door, a cylinder holding means on said ramp, a drive means mounted on said housing, a loading and unloading control means connected to said housing for controlling the loading and unloading of the cylinders to be cleaned into and out of said housing, a main body brush mounted on a shaft connected to said drive means, drive wheels mounted on said housing adjacent said body brush substantially parallel to said body brush and connected to said drive means, a shoulder brush mounted on said housing adjacent one end of said body brush, hold down means controlled by said control means and acting to maintain a cylinder in cleaning position and force it against both said body brush and said shoulder brush, a bottom brush mounted on said housing and driven by said drive means, ejector arms controlled by said control means, said bottom brush being reciprocably movable in response to said control means.

2. In a device for cleaning, drying and polishing heavy gas cylinders, a housing, a loading shelf, a door adjacent said shelf on said housing, a drive means mounted on said housing, operating control means mounted on said housing, a main body brush mounted on a shaft connected to said drive means, cylinder rotating means mounted on said housing adjacent to and in operative relation with said body brush, said cylinder rotating means being driven by said drive means, a shoulder brush means mounted on said housing adjacent one end of said body brush, hold down means controlled by said control means and acting to maintain a cylinder in cleaning position and in further response to said control means to force a cylinder being cleaned against said body brush and said shoulder brush, ejector means actuated by said control means and synchronized with said hold down means to ejected a finished cylinder from said housing.

3. In a device for cleaning drying and polishing heavy gas cylinders, a housing, a body brush,

a bottom brush and a shoulder brush all posi tioned Within said housing and a single control means movable in translation and rotation and operatively coupled to each of said brushes to bring each of said brushes into operation upon a gas cylinder to be cleaned and control the action thereof on said cylinder ejecting means mounted within said housing and actuated by said control means to eject a finished cylinder from cleaning position within said housing.

4. The combination set forth in claim 3, said 5. The combination set forth in claim 4, said 5 shaft having a linkage connecting it to said bot- References Cited in the file of this patent Number UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Merrell Sept. 23, 1890" Olsen July 21, 1903 Romberg Dec. 22, 1914 Volz Nov. 2, 1915 

